Anyone using the NookColor for charts/plates?

riffelj · #1 04-30-2011, 04:27 PM

I rode w/ a friend in his -10 yesterday who was using an IPad for charts/plates. Looked pretty good - except in full sunlight. When I got home I surfed and found this NookColor from Barnes & Nobel. Looks like it has plenty of memory (32G on a microSD card), can display PDFs (from the free FAA site http://aeronav.faa.gov/index.asp?xml...v/applications ) - in color, browse the web via wifi, play audio/video, do email and handle MS Office files. It appears to use a "IPS" (vs "e-ink") display so I'm a bit worried about how it'll handle full-sun glare in my -7A.

While the size looked good (compared to carrying/handling/finding all the paper charts/plates), I'm not sure how readable a chart/plate will be on the screen - and how difficult it will be to navigate to the right screen during high workoads. Price seems manageable - when comparing free downloads to buying paper charts/plates a few times. Battery life looks good (tho they are non-replaceable). It'd also be nice to be able to do email, surf & get wx radar at the destination too w/out lugging a laptop along.

Was wondering if anyone has any experience w/ one of these.

Lionclaw · #2 04-30-2011, 04:45 PM

I bought one to play with a while back. The screen is very nice. To make it actually useful you will need to root it. I installed a custom rom on mine (Cyanogenmod). There are also builds of Honeycomb available, but I found that too many programs wouldn't run on it.

One of the biggest limitations is the lack of GPS hardware. I wrote an Android app called TetherGPS to allow you to use the GPS from your Android phone. If you use Cyanogenmod it will enable bluetooth, and you can use a bluetooth GPS.

https://market.android.com/developer...mpton+Software

http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=860
http://nookdevs.com/Main_Page
http://www.cyanogenmod.com/

Here's a screenshot of my Nook Color running TetherGPS and Naviator.

Post here or send me an e-mail/PM if you need help or have questions.

Edit - Forgot to answer on screen readability. I'm not sure it's going to be any better than the ipad. I don't have both to do a side-by-side comparison, but I believe both use the same IPS screen technology.

Neal@F14 · #3 04-30-2011, 05:22 PM

My local Walmart has the Nook Color for $249. I thought seriously about buying one the other day for this very purpose, but am also concerned about screen readability in bright sunlight, especially when the Dynons in the RV8 are sometimes hard to see in direct sunlight even though they supposedly have the extra bright screens.

It's good to know about the GPS tether app too. Thanks Andy!
If I go that route, I'd definitely have to rig up a USB power cable for use in the plane since my Android phone (HTC Desire) really drains its battery fast when both WiFi and the GPS are switched on.

9GT · #4 04-30-2011, 06:33 PM

The Kindle works very well for this purpose and has a good visible display even in sunlight. My buddy uses his for IFR charts and is happy with this set-up instead of carrying a bunch of heavy books when he fly's long cross country trips.

Lionclaw · #5 04-30-2011, 07:04 PM

I snapped a few pictures outside. The sun was starting to set, so it wasn't exactly direct daytime sunlight. You can see the reflectivity is probably one of the biggest problems. There might be some matte screen protectors you could get.

This one is another app called Navzilla.

Lionclaw · #6 04-30-2011, 07:09 PM

And for USB power I bought one of these:

http://www.amazon.com/New-Trent-iCru...4212039&sr=8-1

At $80 it's a bit pricey, but it can put out 5V 1A and has a capacity of 11000mAh. That should be enough to keep your phone going for a week

riffelj · #7 05-01-2011, 08:28 AM

I stopped by B&N yesterday to see one up-close. It looks good.

As your pics show, full sun is a issue. The screen is bright enough - but the mirror effect of the glass is a problem. However the B&N folks have a matte film that goes over the screen that supposedly solves things. I'll have to look at it a bit more.

Thanks for the info on the GPS option. Because I've already got a GNS430 and a 396 (for wx radar & as a IFR instrument pack backup) installed, having another real-time position display isn't something I'm focused on.

Found videos that might be useful to some as well:

How to make it a full android tablet:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MUoHA...feature=relmfu

How to reset back to out-of-the box condition:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szlGS...feature=relmfu